Aircraft



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55 through a clutch assembly taken on the line 'Iv-l the tube 55, the pinion 52, etc. A tube 59 is pro- 55 Y Patented Apr. 7, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE AIRCRAFT Dana E. Cooley, Letart, W. Va.

Application February 2, 1934, Serial No. '709,486

1 Claim. (Cl. 244-11) The invention relates to helicopters and more of Figure 6 looking in the direction of the arrows. especially to propellers therefor. Figure 8 is a fragmentary plan view showing The primary object of the invention is the prothe mechanism by which variable oscillation of vision of a propeller of this character, wherein an the blades of the propeller is effected. aircraft can be lifted from the ground without Figure 9 isla side elevation partly in section 5 the necessity of the travel of such craft a contaken on the line 9 9 of Figure 8 looking in the siderable distance on the ground and also a direction of the arrows.

landing of the craft can be had without it trav- Figure 10 is a fragmentary perspective View of ersing the ground for any considerable distance. the mechanism shown in Figures '7 and 8. 10 Another object of the invention is the provi- Similar reference characters indicate corre- 10 sion of a propeller of this character, wherein the sponding parts throughout the several views in blades can be adjusted and the same variably the drawings.

oscillated for propelling, repelling and balancing Referring to the drawings in detail, the airan aircraft. craft may be powered by any suitable motor of l5 A further object of the invention is the provi-l a design for aviation purposes and such motor l5 sion of a propeller of this character, wherein the iS preferably t0 be lOCaeCl in the fuselage A and blades thereof are susceptible of being automatiits crank shaft 8i has one end extended into and cally turned so that in successive order these connected with a friction clutch, the latter being blades will be brought to a feathering position 110 Dart 0f the present rlVeIltOn, the Sleeve 85 and thereby alfording the least resistance when serving to release and engage the clutch. This 20 the said blades are in a position for activity in sleeve 85 at one end is machined to receive a pull propelling an aircraft or advancing the latter rod 88 to which is attached a thrust bearing, the when in ight. other end of the pull rod being connected to a le- A still further object of the invention is the ver 89. This lever 89 has connected thereto a provision of a propeller of this character, which hand level 9i by the 115e 0f a Cable 90. When the 25 is comparatively simple in construction, thorlever 9| is moved to engage against the Step pin oughly reliable and elfective in operation, strong, 92 the clutch will be disengaged and Will remain durable and inexpensive to manufacture and inso as the line of pull of the cable 90 passes below stall. the axis on which the said leverY swings.

With these and other objects in View, the in- A worm 12 revolves around an extension of a 30 `vention consists' in the features of construction, hOuSrlg 5| and iS lJlOVOled With Several Sets 0f combination and arrangement of parts as will be anti-friction bearing balls in this instance a drum hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in Se serves to transmit rotation to the worm l2 the accompanying drawings, which disclose the flOm the Clutch Shell. The flange Orl the drum preferred embodiment of the invention and also serves to retain bearing assembly. There is 35 pointed out in the claim hereunto appended. DTOVded felt DaCkIlgS '14 Serving t0 prevent Oil In the accompanying drawings: v leakage. An extension l1 is provided with Figure 1 is a front elevation of an aircraft threads to receive a nut le which is equipped showing propellers constructed in accordance With a set screw and holding the nut irl a Xed 40 with the invention associated therewith. position. 40

Figure 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional A worm wheel 68 engages with the worm 12 view through the hub of the propeller. and is driven thereby. Rotation is transmitted Figure 3 is an exploded top plan view of the tothe teeth of the pinion 54 by means of a drive hub of the propeller as it appears with the beartube 55 which is secured to the hub of the worm ing cap casting removed. wheel 68, this being had through screws 69 which 45 Figure 4 is a sectional view on the line 4 4 pass through hOleS in the flange l3- of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows. A pinion gear 52 iS provided With a Splined ex- Figure 5 is a sectional view through the shaft tension from its hub and this extension receives at the flange to which a blade is attached taken splines 0f a tube 55- A Worm Wheel 68 TeVOlVeS on the line 5 5 0f Figure 2, in the housings 5I and 13, these being provided 50 Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view with anti-friction bearings and correspondingly thro-ugh the driving mechanism by which the the pinion 52. An inspection cover 'lil held in power to the propeller is transmitted. place by the use of screws 'H serves to allow the Figure '7 is a fragmentary sectional view removal of various parts of the assembly, such as vided with flanges at opposite ends, one flanged end is attached to castings 6| and 13 by the use of bolts 5B while the other end is attached to a flange 31 by means of bolts 58. A cup 56 serves to support ball bearings on the under side of the pinion 52 and the teeth 54 of this pinion engage the teeth 32 of a ring gear 36 which is made secure to the hub casting I4 by the screws 3|.

The hub I4 is provided with bearings which carry shafts 2 and 3, these having attached thereto the blades 4 by means of clamps 6 and 1, the latter being held secure by the screws 8. Also screws 9 aid in securing the clamps to the shaft, there being elongated holes to allow adjustment of pitch of the said blade. Near the end of the shafts 2 and 3 are rings fitting into grooves, these grooves being in` the clamps 6 and 1 and in this manner the clamps are prevented from being slipped off of the shafts.

The screws I3 serve by the aid of the grooves into which the blade metal is folded to secure the same to the clamps 6 and 1. The collars I0 are in halves and clamp the shafts by the use of the screws I2. A casting I (Figure 2) forms the upper half of the bearings in which the shafts 2 and 3 oscillate. This casting I is secured to a casting I4 by means of bolts I I which pass through holes meshing with the holes |5-I 5 in the flange of the casting I4. A cover 5 is held in place by screws 94. The shaft 2 differs from the shaft 3 in that shaft 2 is provided with an eye in the center through which passes the shaft 3. Each shaft is provided with collars forming thrust bearings for said shafts. Teeth I6-I6 are cut half way around the outside diameter of each collar on opposite sides thereof, the purpose of which will hereinafter appear.

A tubular spindle 30 (Figure 2) forms the axis of the hub I4 and is provided at the top with a collar 29 through which are drilled holes to accommodate the screws 28--28 which secure the spindle to the casting I4. The spindle in this instance is shown equipped with anti-friction bearings at the top and bottom thereof and also is equipped with a split pin 44. A forging 31 provides a support for the spindle S0 in that it carries bearings therefor, it also carrying pins 24-24 which are retained by set screws 34-34. It is also provided with bosses 38-38 carrying a shaft |04.

In order that the blades of the machine which serve as wings therefor may act as propelling agents and to provide balancing means it is necessary to oscillate them and also to control the extent of oscillation they may be subjected to in flight.

The teeth I 6|6 are cut in thrust collars of the shafts 2 and 3 in which the teeth 20 of the rack block I9 engage. Each rack block I9 is drilled from end to end and threaded to receive threads of a push rod I1. At the top of the push rod is a lock nut I8 for retaining adjustment of the same. The push rod I1 rests on the ring 2|, the latter at its under side being grooved to form a ball race for balls 22 upon which said ring re volves. A forging 23 is provided with a groove for the balls 22. The forging 23 is also provided with an extension lip on opposite sides thereof to receive the pins 24 and upon which the said forging 23 hangs so that it may be tipped out of level in opposite directions and when so tipped causes the push rods to reciprocate which in turn causes the blades to oscillate as they revolved by means of the rack block and gear teeth I6-|5.

To one side of the forging 23 is attached a link 95 which also connects to a lever 96. The oscillating shaft |04 carries three levers 96, 91 and 98, respectively, each of which is secured to the same by keys. To the end of the levers 91 and 98 are attached cables |00 and |0I, respectively, these passing over sheaves |02 and |03, respectively, and connect to either end of lever |05.

Mounted on a sliding saddle by means of a hollow pin I I2 is a lever 65 to opposite ends of which are connected rods I08-I08 which in turn connect to levers ISD-|30. A saddle III is carried by two rods IIB-I I0, these being riveted thereto. The rods are supported by brackets I09-I09 at the top of which are bearings through which they may slide. A hand lever |2| connects to the saddle III by means of the parts II5, I|1 and II8 and this lever is provided with a latch lever |20 serving to lift a latch out of the notches I I 9 when it is desired to shift the lever to various positions. end by bearings |23 and |32, respectively.

A control lever I 24 (similar to those now in .common use) passes through a slot I 33 provided in the end of the lever I|4 and thus it follows that this lever ||4 will be effected only when the hand lever |24 is moved to the right or to the left which movements increase the oscillation of one group of the blades while decreasing the oscillation of the other group sol that in this way the aircraft is prevented from overturning while in flight.

Struts |26 and |21 aid the tube 59 in supporting the blades of the aircraft in that they connect to the forging 31 by being welded to the same or otherwise joined therewith and also secured to the frame work of the fuselage in a like manner.

The outstanding merits of the present invention lie in the fact that not only do the blades of the machine serve to sustain its weight in flight but propel it as well and additionally produce a repelling action as well as serving to balance the machine.

While it may be possible to lift the machine vertically for flight or lower it to a landing in a like manner, it will not be advisable to do so because of the possibility of machine failure this resulting in a violent landing so for this reason the machine has been designed that it may take off after rst making a short run on the ground.

In the event of engine failure while in flight the machine may be brought to a landing and this is accomplished first by releasing the clutch, then the hand lever |2I is moved to an extremely backward position this causing the blades to revolve in opposite direction from that in which they turn when driven by the motor. In this position the blades serve only to support the weight of the machine functioning as ailerons and thus the said machine volplanes to a safe landing as does the more widely known airplane.

The fuselage and the tail of the machine are the same as that used on ordinary planes and included are horizontal and vertical rudders, the design of which being no part of the present invention.

While it has been stated that groups of four blades each are mounted on opposite sides of the fuselage, it being understood, however, that the number of blades either a greater or a lesser number may operate with equal results and the machine may be built to operate with two or more motors and this is contemplated within the scope of the invention.

The forging 23 within the hub I4 by reason of The shaft ||5 is supported at either the fact that such forging is susceptible of tilting action therein the wings 4 on the rotation of the hub will be automatically turned so that in successive order these wings will be brought to a feathering position, namely, in a horizontal plane so as to afford the least resistance when the other blades are in a position for activity in propelling the aircraft or on advancing the latter when in flight. This forging 23 when set at an angle remains in this position during the rotation of the hub I4 and by the ring 2| the push rods I'i are acted upon and the rack blocks I9 engaging with the gear formed thrust collar I6 causes the automatic turning of the shaft carrying a pair of the wings 4 which are disposed at right angles to each other and thus by rotation of the hub I4 these Wings are turned with the turning of the shaft carrying the same. In other words, the wings are constantly changing their position during the rotation of the hub and this is eifected automatically as should be apparent from Figure 10 of the drawings.

What is claimed is:

The combination with a power shaft of driven shafts operated by said power shaft, lever actuated clutch mechanism between the power and driven shafts to control the latter, hubs rotated by said driven shafts, opposed radially disposed wings journaled in said hubs for oscillation, means confined within the hubs and manually adjusted for the automatic changing of the pitch of the wings during the rotation of the hubs, manually operable means for controlling said means, means for rotatably supporting the hubs in a vertical position to have the wings turn automatically in a horizontal plane during rotation of said hubs, means for driving the hubs and means for controlling the driving means.

DANA E. COOLEY. 

